Page 11
Was I really going to die here? What should I do? Would it help to beg? To promise I’d seen nothing?
But the Raymond I knew…
Do you even know him anymore?
I gulped. Before I could decide what to do, he knelt down, placing his right knee on the blood-soaked ground, coming to my level. His eyes met mine in a furrowed stare. And I only glared at him with wide eyes, trying to be as hushed and invisible as possible. After years of running, I was finally standing before the conversation I’d always feared. But I couldn’t stand as boldly as I’d imagined, nor could I shout out the words that had built up inside me.
I never imagined our reunion would be like this. Well, I hadn’t expected it to be romantic, but certainly not in the middle of a crime scene either. As I opened my mouth to speak, he acted first.
“Are you real?”
At his gentle tone, I held my breath. The next thing I knew, his hands were rising to my cheeks, and I shuddered.
No way.
His fingers drifted to my ear, then into my hair, his eyes following his own touch, mesmerized, as if afraid of missing a single moment.
“You’re real. But why are you here? How did you get here?”
His blue-green eyes were calm. Absurdly calm for this situation. And his face, emotionless as usual, reminded me not to let my guard down. After all those damn years, after everything that had happened, if he could talk to me like that, then I would do the exact same.
Doing my best to keep my voice from sounding strange or panicked, I said immediately, “I didn’t come here on purpose. I had business here. Nothing to do with you.”
“Hmm, is that so?” he mused, a faint smile curling at his lips.
He was… smiling at me? He found this amusing? What was he really doing? What was I doing here? I should leave. None of this was part of my plan, and I rarely dealt with events beyond my control. I always assessed the risks and acted accordingly. But for the past few hours, I had lost the strength to move. Raymond had drugged me as always, forcing me into a sweet, terrifying dream in the darkest corner of Mars. He had taken control of my logic and free will, leaving me in the middle of a pool of blood, with myself as the only witness…
My eyes snapped open. I recoiled from his touch, scrambling backward. I barely found my feet, my breath coming in ragged gasps.
“I didn’t see anything!” I shouted with all my might.
Without waiting for his reaction, I turned and bolted toward my only salvation.
The streets were unfamiliar, but I wasn’t in a position to care about that. I emerged onto a long, dark road to the right. Cold wind struck my face, slipping through the curls that escaped beneath my hat. I collapsed behind the corner of a building, pressing my palms to my knees, tries to catch my breath.
For a heartbeat, I allowed myself to relax. It’s over. I escaped.
I didn’t expect Raymond to follow me here, but still moved toward the large trash cans and sat down on the sidewalk, clutching my chest. I tried to close my eyes, to force the panic down, but my brow wouldn’t soften. Fear wasn’t letting go of me just yet.
Sensing the heavy footsteps approaching, I froze.
I crawled backward, pressing my back against the wall, trying to disappear into the stone. I held my body perfectly still, wished to be ignored so bad, but the footsteps were too close now. When a shadow stretched over me, I forced my head up, my neck moving like a broken android.
Raymond Loxton was staring at me with that same piercing gaze. But how? I didn’t sense anyone following me. So how did he find me?
How can I not know the way to my home?
“Who are you? How dare you escape me?”
His tone didn’t sound like he was asking a question. It was calm and sharp.
“I…”
Did he really not remember me? Four years had passed, and someone like him must have had a lot of affairs since then. I must have been nothing more than a faint memory. Even though my spirits sank for a moment, I reminded myself this was something to be glad about. After all, my only wish was to stay away from danger. From Raymond himself.
“I… I’m Mina Olind, and…”
“Of course you are.”
